The family is very important in South American culture, and many families get together every weekend for a long, chilled-out barbecue. Asking someone about their family is a good way to get to know someone and start a conversation with a local.

Note that the masculine form and the feminine form are very similar – usually just the final letter is different – but in the plural, you use the masculine (even if it includes female family members). For example mi tío is my uncle, but if I talk about mis tíos I probably mean my aunt(s) and uncle(s).

Spanish speakers learning English will often start off asking questions like, “Do you have any brothers?” instead of “Do you have any brothers or sisters?”

Here the formal usted forms are in purple letters and the informal vos forms are in green.

Exercise: Identify whether the following questions use the formal usted form or the informal vos form. Then, whichever they are, rewrite them using the other pronoun. This first one has been done for you.

1. ¿Tenés hermanos? VOS –> ¿Usted tiene hermanos?

2. ¿Usted es abuela?

3. ¿Vive con sus hijos?

4. ¿Cuántos primos tenés?

5. ¿Cuántos hermanos tiene tu mamá?

6. ¿Cuántos años tiene su nieto?

7. ¿Tenés primos?

8. ¿Cuántos tíos tiene usted?

9. ¿Usted tiene cuñados?

10. ¿Cuántos años tiene tu hermana?

Any questions? If you’re not sure about the content of today’s class or have something to add, leave us a comment below and we’ll get back to you. Your questions and comments will help other students too. Our Spanish immersion programs at La Herradura in Uruguay and Spain teach you an international form of Spanish, but the teachers are all native speakers and will offer guidance on local expressions and words.